HIALEAH (CBSMiami) – A 43-year-old Miami man who police say has “the face of evil” is charged with abducted, raping and robbing a 27-year-old woman.

Julio Cordero, who has an extensive arrest record including a charge of first degree murder and armed robbery in 2007, is being held without bond after a court appearance in Miami.

Cordero is now charged with false imprisonment, armed sexual battery and possession of marijuana and cocaine.

Records show Cordero was on house arrest for trafficking but the Miami-Dade Corrections Department said he had a GPS electronic monitoring device and had no curfew restrictions.

“This is the face of evil,” said Miami Police Sergeant Freddie Cruz, clutching a mug shot of Cordero. “I say the face of evil as he could have taken the life of this young lady.”

Cruz said it was 11:50 on Saturday night when Cordero had a conversation with the victim at a cafeteria on the corner of 26th Street and Palm Avenue in Hialeah. He offered to give her a ride home but instead drove her some six miles to his apartment in Miami.

“Before they get out of the car he tells her that if she does get out and screams for help, he will kill her,” Cruz told CBS4’s Peter D’Oench.

Police say Cordero took the victim inside his apartment on the corner of N.W. 14th Ave. and N.W. 39th St.

“He then ties her up and takes out two knives and threatens to kill her if she screams,” said Cruz. He said the victim was raped multiple times and robbed.

An arrest affidavit says Cordero forced the victim to drink alcohol and take marijuana to “forget details of the act performed on her against her will.”

Police say the victim fled early Sunday morning and called police and showed them where the attack happened. A CBS4 camera crew was at Cordero’s apartment as the shirtless suspect was taken into custody.

“We’re asking anyone who thinks they were victimized by Cordero to come forward so we can charge him with other crimes,” said Cruz. “We don’t know if he’s committed other crimes.”

Police say during a search of Cordero’s apartment, they found marijuana, cocaine and “two knives matching the victim’s description of the knives he brandished during the sexual acts.”

The arrest affidavit says the victim was able to positively identify Cordero as her attacker. The affidavit says Cordero admitted to having sex with the victim multiple times while she was in his apartment but he claimed it was consensual.

Records show Cordero was arrested in 1995, 2000 and 2003 for battery. He’s also been arrested for tampering with a witness, trafficking in marijuana over 2,000 pounds and trafficking in a controlled substance.

Records also show he was arrested in 2007 for first degree murder and armed robbery as an accessory after the fact. No action was taken.

Luisa Hernandez owns the home that Cordero’s efficiency apartment is attached to. She said, “This is surprising.”

She told D’Oench, “He was a very calm person. I never heard noises. He never gave me any problems. I didn’t hear the sounds of a young woman’s screams.”

At a cafeteria across the street from where police say Cordero met the victim on Saturday night, café worker Dayana Matute said she recognized Cordero’s picture.

“He used to fix cars next door,” she said. “He used to come here to eat. And he used to look at us weird. He used to look at our breasts. I felt uncomfortable with him,” said Matute.

Now Cordero is behind bars again.

“You have to be careful with men coming in,” Matute said.

“Men come here all the time. I do feel safer knowing that he is not around.”

Peter D'Oench is a reporter for CBS4 News. He came to CBS4 from WKRN in Nashville.
D'Oench was an award-winning member of the WPLG News Team as a reporter from 1989 – 2004. In addition, he was a producer for news, special projects and...